Update on the medical marijuana battle in Ohio

Ohio is thinking about putting the medical marijuana issue on a ballot so the people could actually vote on whether they want to legalize medical marijuana or not. However, there are groups, communities, organizations that are trying to prevent that from happening. The legalization opponents are against the placement of this issue on the ballot because they believe that marijuana should not be turned into a political issue but should remain a medical one.

A political and a medical issue

That’s all fine and dandy but we think it’s a bit late for that since marijuana has been a political issue since the first joint was puffed in the U.S. In addition, isn’t medical marijuana a medical issue as well? There’s this organization called Drug Free Alliance that is firmly against the legalization of medical marijuana and the reason why it shouldn’t end up on a ballot, according to them, is because “the people never voted for the use of antibiotic and prescription drugs, so why should they vote on medical marijuana?“. We’re not kidding here, that’s what they actually said. How can they take themselves seriously is beyond us.

Medicinal or recreational?

Dr. Kevin Sabet who used to work for the White House as an advisor on drug policy says that he doesn’t really believe this entire charade is being done with medical marijuana patients in mind. He believes people just want to push this ballot because it will get them one step closer to recreational marijuana use. According to him, only 5% of medical marijuana users have a good reason for the consumption of the drug, while the rest could live their lives without it. He also said he is not entirely against legalization but in case it does happen, it should be regulated to the tiniest detail.

Painkillers Vs. Cannabis

Greg Homer, Monroe’s chief of police, has a bit of a weird view on the entire matter. He has seen his fair share of marijuana users and in short – he didn’t like what he saw. From that point on, every time somebody mentioned marijuana to him (albeit medical or recreational) he got this image of a couple of stoned teenagers munching down on pancakes like animals. Therefore, every marijuana user acts in a similar fashion, according to Mr. Homer. He also added that he doesn’t understand why we need medical marijuana in the first place when we have so many FDA approved painkillers that could serve the same purpose. This is why we emphasize cannabis education on a national level.

You see, Mr. Homer, painkillers and other FDA approved drugs can cause devastating side effect with people who suffer from chronic illnesses. A couple of side effects include loss of appetite, hair loss, and stomach pain; severe diarrhea, vomiting, etc. Weed doesn’t include any of that. If anything, it helps you eat more and alleviates the pain so a person can go on with his daily routine. Hopefully, an educational campaign could be organized to prevent such inaccuracies from being stated in the future.